How alerting works in 6.2.2 version with search head clustering ?

[spsrasru]

we recently migrated to search head clustered configuration. I'm trying to find how the search head manages scheduled searches and alerts. Specifically, where is the savedsearches.conf file located and how do we allow others to create new saved searches and update those saved searches? How does the search head then manage the scheduling of the scheduled searches and alerts? Do we need to configure authentication file on all 3 search heads in clustered environment ? if so, don't they send duplicate alerts/email notifications ?

[lguinn2 · Accepted solution]

The search head captain manages the scheduling of searches and alerts. It ensures that alerts happen once and it coordinates alert suppression options across the cluster. The search head that runs the alert is responsible for the alert actions such as sending email.
http://docs.splunk.com/Documentation/Splunk/6.2.2/DistSearch/SHCarchitecture#Search_head_cluster_cap...

Every search head has a copy of the savedsearches.conf files (all of them); when users add or update searches, the changes are replicated across the cluster to every search head.

Authentication needs to be configured on every search head in the cluster.

You should read the Distributed Search manual before deploying search head clustering. It's a pretty complex topic.